Portret van Johann Dryander

About this artwork

verzamelaarsmerk, verso, gestempeld: Lugt 2228

Art Historical Context

This engraving by Robert Boissard, between 1597 and 1599, captures the likeness of Johann Dryander, a notable German physician, mathematician, and astronomer of the sixteenth century. Though Dryander had passed away decades earlier, posthumous portraits this one were common during the late Renaissance, serving to honor intellectual figures whose ideas continued to influence European thought. Boissard, a French printmaker active in the period, specialized in such commemorative images, often disseminating them through the growing medium of engraving. Measuring just 144 by 110 millimeters, the work exemplifies how prints allowed scholars and collectors across Europe to own affordable likenesses of prominent individuals. The fine lines and precise detailing typical of engraving highlight both the artist’s technical skill and the era’s fascination with accurate representation. A collector’s stamp on the reverse (Lugt 2228) further attests to the print’s journey through notable private holdings, underscoring its enduring appeal to those interested in the history of science and portraiture.

About the Artist

Robert Boissard · 1586–1691

Robert Boissard (c. 1570–after 1630) was a French engraver and draughtsman whose work exemplifies the transition from late Renaissance to early Baroque printmaking in France. Born around 1570 in Valence, Boissard belonged to an artistic family and was a relative of the distinguished scholar and artist Jean-Jacques Boissard (1528–1602), whose monumental biographical and archaeological publications ...